Enjoy a classic northern Tanzania itinerary with a difference: this 9-day tour combines game drives with walking, biking and canoeing in Tanzania’s best game-viewing destinations to deliver a comprehensive safari experience. Game drives are one of the best ways to see big game – and with Arusha National Park, Lake Manyara, the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti all lined up you will certainly see plenty of animals on your vacation. Yet leaving the 4x4 at camp and exploring by bike, on foot and by canoe allows you to discover the small and fascinating details of the savannah, with your expert guide pointing out birds, insects, reptiles and medicinal plants. It is the best of both worlds: in the vehicle you can of further but miss much of the detail; on your own steam you do not go quite as far but the reward is getting to know Africa from the ground up.
Accommodation after your opening two nights at a lodge in Arusha is in very comfortable tented camps. Your tent at every stop is large enough to stand up in and has a double bed with crisp cotton linen and a large en suite bathroom with a hot-water shower. These camps have been chosen for their low environmental impact but high reward: they are set in game-rich areas and allow easy access to some of the best wildlife viewing in Africa such as the Big 5 of the Ngorongoro Crater, the seasonal Serengeti Wildebeest Migration and the famous tree-climbing lions and huge flocks of flamingos of Lake Manyara.
This is an overland tour, driving between destinations with your driver-guide and allowing you time to sit back and watch the glorious African Rift Valley scenery unfold. There is an opportunity to interact with local Tanzanian cultures – you could take a bike trip to a local village at Ngorongoro – and the itinerary and activities will appeal to amateur wildlife photographers and adventurous safari travellers.